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Friday, November 11, 2011

Tonight ghosts, goblins, gremlins and all manner of imaginary monsters may knock on your door. But while Halloween is all about make believe, for some people the business of paranormal phenomenon is serious. Sally Rhine Feather is one of them. She is executive director emeritus of the Rhine Research Center in Durham. The center, founded by Feather’s father, J.B. Rhine, has been around in one form or another for 70 years. In that time, it has investigated such unexplained experiences as telepathy, clairvoyance and life after death. Host Frank Stasio talks to Feather about her work and her family’s history as researchers of the paranormal.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Some things just cannot be explained, except perhaps through the paranormal.

Located off West Campus, the Rhine Research Center stands as testament to Duke’s historic connection to parapsychology research, which is the study of psychic phenomena like hypnosis and telepathy. Although the center is no longer associated with the University, a number of Duke graduates and professors are involved with the center’s board of directors and advisory board. Using scientific methods as the basis for their studies, Rhine researchers seek to make sense of the unexplainable. Over the years, though, the center has dealt with criticism and doubt surrounding the credibility and legitimacy of the field of parapsychology.
“We admit that we can’t explain everything,” Executive Director John Kruth said. “We are scientists. We’re trying to improve on the science as we move along, just like any science.”
The Rhine Research Center aims to educate the public about parapsychology, build community around the field and provide research based on modern engineering and technological advances, Kruth said. In addition to running a museum and library, the center offers online education classes on parapsychology, brings in speakers—including former astronauts and government officials—biweekly and holds Psychic Experiences Group meetings monthly.
“We study what is called ‘psi’ phenomenon, and psi is consistent with what was previously called extrasensory perception, or ESP,” Kruth said.
He noted that psi consists of four different phenomena—telepathy, psychokinesis or healing, precognition and clairvoyance, also called remote viewing.
Although parapsychologists focus mainly on ESP and psychokinesis studies, they also research survival cases, which are in-depth studies of individuals who have had close encounters with death, Kruth said.
“We’re talking about everything from near death experiences—people who have experiences when they’re clinically dead—to reincarnation research,” Kruth said. “This is also where spirits, haunting and ghosts fit in.”

A pioneer in the paranormal
Parapsychology has a long history with Duke.
Following Stanford University, Duke became the first major institution to study the field in an academic setting. Three years after the University was established, founding scientists Joseph and Louisa Rhine joined William McDougall to research psychical studies. At the time, psychical research primarily questioned the existence of an afterlife and relied heavily on spirits and mediums. The Rhines and McDougall took a more quantitative approach, using special cards and dice machines and soliciting undergraduate students to be test subjects for experiments.
“In a sense they functioned pretty much as normal scientists,” said Seymour Mauskopf, professor emeritus of the history department and member of the Rhine Research Center advisory board.
In the 1930s, the center—then called the Duke Parapsychology Laboratory—was established to support the budding science of parapsychology. Joseph Rhine also created the Parapsychology Laboratory at Duke and the Journal of Parapsychology. Still, the field of study remained contentious.

“By the time I came to Duke, which was in the mid-1960s, there were people who felt that Duke was being given a bad name by the association of parapsychology,” Mauskopf said, adding that he is unsure whether the laboratory’s reputation played a role in its disassociation from Duke.
When Rhine retired in 1965, parapsychology studies became disassociated from the University through a mutual agreement. The new independent institution became known as the Foundation for Research on the Nature of Man.
Some of the center’s largest successes include the creation of ESP cards, which were used in place of decks of cards in telepathy and precognition experiments, Kruth said. The experiments today, however, are conducted with computers or physical targets.

Situated in science
Several experiments are currently underway at the center.
Using a light lab—a darkroom with low intensity light detectors for infrared and ultraviolet light—Kruth said Rhine researchers measure the energy emitted from healers and long-term meditation practitioners.
“Normally most people would go in this room, and our gauges register pretty much a flat line,” he said. “But when we put someone who is a healer in there… you get huge spikes and huge light emissions... indicating a release of energy.”
Kruth added that as far as he knows, the light lab is the only experiment of its type where researchers are using electrical engineering technology to detect human energy.
Another experiment relates to electronic voice phenomena, which are recordings of voice or voice-like sounds that are not decipherable to the human ear. When the recordings are played back, some believe they can hear phrases of words. In the experiment, Rhine researchers have participants listen to 12 recordings and note what they think they are hearing, Kruth said.
John Palmer, editor of the Journal of Parapsychology and a member of the Rhine Center’s board of directors, studies motor automatism—during which bodily functions or movements occur without being consciously controlled. Palmer cited Ouija boards as an example.
“[In the experiment,] we set up an analog of an Ouija board,” Palmer said. “Basically the person moves a pen around a grid… and has to stop at the location on the grid where their hand is, telling them that [a] randomly selected target is located.”
Palmer added that in order to surpass the limitations of a conscious, rational mind, he tells participants to clear their minds, as they would do in meditation, or Palmer distracts participants by making them read quotations on a screen while doing the test.
The Ouija board experiment is not meant to conjure spirits but rather is a scientific analysis, Palmer added.

Building a community
The Rhine Research Center also serves as a hub for people who believe in the paranormal.
Kruth said the center catalogues personal accounts of people who have experienced paranormal activity via a submission form on the center’s website. Although the accounts are not used as evidence for paranormal events, they are collected and classified at the center, he said.
In addition, the monthly Psychic Experiences Group meetings give people who experience psychic phenomena at chance to share in an open, judgment-free forum, events coordinator Susan Freeman said.
“We’ve had people that have experiences that they don’t understand, and it frightens them,” Freeman said. “Somehow when they find out that there are other people who have actually had these experiences and feelings, it helps them gain a better perspective.”Want to hear more about the paranormal?

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The question of what happens to us at the time of bodily death has been widely debated by theologians, philosophers, and scientists throughout the ages. While some hold that we have a soul or a spirit that survives, others have a more mechanistic view. They believe that our consciousness is simply the result of brain function, the firing of neurons. Thus, when the brain dies, that is the end of us. But, in truth, this is all hypothetical. No one really knows---or do they? Dr. Eben Alexander thinks he has the answer.

Dr Alexander is a seasoned neurosurgeon who was trained at Duke and Harvard. In spite of a religious upbringing, his scientific background coupled with his life experiences, had led to him to be a religious nonbeliever. He had no expectation of an afterlife. And then something happened that dramatically changed all that. Dr. Alexander had a near death experience!

He woke up one morning several years ago with a debilitating headache and backache. Within a short period of time he was in a coma, suffering from a rare strain of bacterial meningitis. In the hospital, his doctors were not hopeful regarding his chances of survival, much less recovery. He remained in that coma for seven days, hovering between life and death. And then, remarkably, he woke up, dazed and confused, but with vivid memories of what had occurred while in the comatose state. Amazingly he suffered no neurological damage whatsoever. As he pondered all that he remembered and the fact that he had emerged unscathed, he attempted to find scientific reasons to explain it all. Could he have had hallucinations as a result of the disease? Was the lack of adequate blood flow, and thus lack of sufficient oxygen to his brain an explanation? In the end, he had to abandon looking to science for answers, and accepted the conclusion that he couldn't at first believe. His consciousness had left his body!

Last month, I had the opportunity to meet Dr. Alexander when he was here as one of the keynote speakers at the IANDS yearly conference.(International Association for Near Death Studies) Although I had seen him make a short appearance on "Through the Wormhole" on the SCI channel, I knew little about him and had no idea what to expect. When I encountered him in person, the presentation I had seen on TV paled in comparison to the dynamic, personable individual that I met. Eben Alexander is excited about what happened to him. He is enthusiastic to get his message out. And that message is emphatically, "There is an afterlife. I know. I've been there!"
When he spoke at the conference, he had all who attended hanging on to his every word. Most were brought to tears by his narrative. Even the strongest skeptics had to be left with some doubt! I'm not going to give away the details of his story because Dr Alexander will be a guest of the Rhine this Friday night, Oct 7th, at the Stedman Auditorium. So if possible, anyone who can, should hear this in person. If not, he is in the process of writing a book which will reveal all. I will only remark again that he is convinced that there is life after death, that he experienced it, and that it is good!

The survival question is not often addressed at the Rhine, not because we don't find it of interest or importance. In fact, J.B. Rhine considered it to be the tacit issue that underlied much of his research. He recognized though that life after death did not lend itself well to the scientific method! The possibility of nonlocal consciousness, however, is often cited as a reasonable explanation for the paranormal phenomena that we do research. While, at this point, we can demonstrate that certain PSI events do occur, the underlying mechanism by which they occur, remains a mystery.
So, what really does happen when we die? Is, in fact, the mind separate from the body, having it's own eternal existence? For some, Eben Alexander's account of his journey into another dimension, in spite of a nonfunctional brain, will just give further credence to their already held belief that an afterlife is a reality. For others, skepticism will remain, or perhaps there will be absolute disbelief. However, as difficult as it may be to fully grasp this concept, sooner or later, each and every one of us are inevitably going to find out! Until then, we will probably just have to wonder!

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Last Friday, one of the world's most well known psychic detectives was a guest speaker at the Stedman Auditorium. Noreen Renier started out years ago as a single mother working in public relations and advertising, with no interest in the paranormal. She was totally unaware that she might have any special abilities. And then, quite unexpectedly, one night while visiting friends, she claims that she "connected" with one of their deceased grandmothers!

This was the remarkable beginning to her unconventional career as a psychic! And although there are not an abundance of real world applications for work in this area (not yet,anyway!) Noreen began working with law inforcement helping them to solve crimes. By her report, she has now been involved in more than four hundred cases in the United States and six foreign countries. She has been featured in numerous television programs, and has authored two books.

In person, Noreen appears to be about as open and down to earth as a person can be. She says she is as astonished by the dimension of her capabilities as are the clients who utilize her services. While apparently she has located missing persons, and led police and FBI agents to criminals they were seeking, she admits that, left to her own devices, she can hardly find her way around the supermarket!

In her talk, Noreen intrigued the audience when she presented cases and discussed various aspects of her work. While she omitted many of the more graphic and disturbing details, it is clear that what she does is quite serious and involves situations that fortunately most of us will never have to deal with. These include murder, abduction, tragic accidents, and mysterious disappearances.

The method she uses to obtain her knowledge is known as Psychometry. This involves her holding an object, such as a piece of jewelry, or an article of clothing , belonging to someone and accessing information. For reasons we don't entirely understand, these revelations come to her through visions or impressions. While this is happening, she often goes into a trance state, and when finished, often has no recollection of what she said.

While there are a known number of people who appear to have this gift---of being what is called a psychometrist----Noreen feels that anyone is capable of it. When recounting her first experiences, which as stated, were quite a shock to her, she then made an effort to develop her skills by learning different techniques, and ongoing practice.

Now, in addition to her forensic work, Noreen gives courses and workshops to help others develop their own psychic abilities. It is her belief that one's sixth sense can be trained ,just as any of the other five senses, to evolve to greater levels of mastery. She recounts that her students have been able to produce amazing results.

As with all areas of PSI, the underlying mechanisms of psychometry, need to be subjected to much more scientific research. At the Rhine, we are planning to commence controlled studies with many gifted individuals to assess their abilities. We hope that in doing so, we might not only illuminate the mysterious capabilities of the mind, but also put an end to the ongoing controversies in the scientific world with regard to the paranormal.
-- Cynthia Nigro, Ph.D.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Here below is an excerpt from a letter to my father JB Rhine from Rev. Hubert Pearce written in 1956 on Pearce's stationery as Minister of First Methodist Church in Wynne, Arkansas. I stumbled across this letter by accident when searching in the Duke Special Collections Library for JB's correspondence with Norman Vincent Peale, a well-known religious figure of bygone days with whom JB corresponded. (In fact Peale prints a fascinating article about JB's work and it's importance for religion in his Guidepost publication in 1958).

Background: Hubert E. Pearce was the one of most outstanding high-scoring subjects of the early 1930's Duke card-calling tests, particularly important for his role as subject in the Pearce-Pratt experimental series that is generally considered the definitive experiment for ESP in those early days in terms of tight conditions conducted with two experimenters at a distance across the Duke University campus. Hubert also correctly guessed 25 cards correct in an informal test that JB conducted with him after a challenge to test his ability.

But in 9/27/56 my father receives this message from Hubert that refers back to the Pearce-Pratt work of 20 years earlier, as follows,

"Just before we moved into our new church in Bentonville, I received a letter from a Martin Gardner in New York who was evidently writing a critique of Parapsychology. My office was moved into the new building while I was out of the city and the letter was lost. When I returned from our trip (in which he visited JB in North Carolina), I had another letter in which he asked if it hadn't been long enough that my conscience was bothering me to where I was ready to confess that the work there was not well controlled etc. etc. I am enclosing my reply to him."----Hubert E. Pearce

Hubert's reply to Martin Gardner reads as follows:

Dear Mr. Gardner:

Upon my return from a trip to Durham and Washington I found your interesting letter. I will have to admit that it is a new approach and I wish that I might have had it to send to Dr. Rhine. Of course, you realize that it isn't deserving of a respectable reply. There are a lot of things that might be said to express my opinion of it--and probably of you.

May I say simply that I am as much interested in the project now as I was when I was in the University and the longer I live the more I become convinced of its reality.

Those of us who have worked with Dr. Rhine have never once doubted his ability as a scientist and research director, his devotion to the Truth, his brilliance, or his integrity.
You are simply beating again the path that was beat by Experts in the 1930's.

The day will come when Dr. Rhine's name will be among the Immortals -- and the name of his critics forgotten.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

August's Remote Viewing group meeting was unusually amazing. One of the things that fascinates me is how, despite years of "unbelievable" experiences in my work with the Rhine Research Center, I continue to be surprised when something unexpected occurs. You'd think I'd get used to it, but fortunately I don't, I still get impressed. Last night was one of those events.

At our monthly meetings we try to mix it up and experience the many facets of the Remote Viewing experience. We do this by trying out various modes of intuitive information gatherings such as dowsing, or we practice different flavors of RV such as ERV, WRV, CRV, etc. We also try different data gathering scenarios with outbounder targets, picture targets, experiential targets, multiple sensory targets, things like that. In other words, each RV group meeting is a new experience and never boring, always educational and fun. So last evening we decided to try again some Remote Viewing and analysis of our sessions.

Analyzing information from viewers is a whole different kettle of fish from gathering the data, but it is just as essential, and some would argue much more important to the RV process than the raw data. In doing the analysis of the information, it provides viewers with a new and useful perspective on the quality and value of the data they gather as remote viewers. I also wanted us to have the chance to quantify our sessions, to be able to say "This data applies to that tasking", so we did sessions that did just that.

We divided ourselves into groups of 3 members, and gave each of our groups a name. Before the meeting I had put together some target sets, 4 envelopes per set with a photograph inside each envelope. In each group of envelopes there would be one chosen as the tasked envelope. I did not look at the photos in the envelopes, I just randomly chose them from a box full of envelopes before the meeting. I asked each group, while holding up their set of envelopes, to describe on paper the photograph/event depicted in the target envelope. Again, each group gets its own set of 4 randomly chosen, unknown to any of us, envelopes. One of those envelopes is the tasked target for them to Remote View. They do not get to touch the envelopes until AFTER the sessions and analysis and feedback are provided. They go off, each group to a separate room to do their RV session however they see fit to do that. I hang back with the sets of envelopes, and while they are silently doing their sessions, I flip a coin twice to chose the one envelope from the set of four. Two coin flips provides 4 possible options. I then write down the envelope number for each set and put that piece of paper in my notebook where it won't be seen. Then the groups come back at a certain time and I give the pack of envelopes, still closed up, and the paperwork of the viewers sessions for that target, to a different group for analysis. What I ask them to do is to open the envelopes and lay the photos out on a table, then take the writing and drawings done by the viewers and rank each of the 4 photos from closest match to the data to least match to the photo. So each group analyzes another group's work, deciding which of the potential targets is most accurately described by the remote viewing session data. They write down their ranking of most described (#1) to least described (#4) and we all get back together. Then I shuffle the now closed envelopes in each set, and pull out the envelope that was the tasked target for each set, and I compare that number with the ranking numbers the analysis groups provided. Of the 3 groups of viewers, we had 2 #1's and 1 #2. In other words, two of the groups hit the nail on the head, and the other group was off by one. We did this same type of viewing/analysis/ranking many months ago and did not have such stunning results. This time was different, their success surprised me. This was not a controlled experiment, but you have to be impressed with their work.

What "caused" the group to do so well? Was it my exciting and informative Powerpoint presentation at the beginning of the meeting discussing the Remote Viewing experience? Probably not.... Was it our review of the many different CRV courses/process that have evolved since the Government RV program was declassified? Doubtful. I think a lot has to do with the group dynamic that has been evolving over the many meetings, where we are getting to know and trust and rely on each other as we share our experiences and our knowledge. Its an environment that is as laid-back as it is serious about what we are up to, whether or not we had success in our RV sessions, we still had a valuable time at the meeting for a dozen other reasons. If this is something you want to participate in, I hope you will join us at the next meeting on September 21st. If you want to be on the Remote Viewing mailing list, drop me a line a benton@rhine.org. I look forward to hearing from you, and I hope to see you at our next get-together.-- Benton Bogle

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Daryl Bem likes to use quotes from Lewis Carroll’s, Through The Looking Glass. One of his favorites which is said to Alice by the White Queen is this, “….sometimes, I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.” So, does Daryl Bem believe impossible things himself? Well, a large part of the scientific community thinks he does.

In March, Dr. Bem rocked the scientific world, when he published an article in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, one of the most renowned and respected journals in the field, entitled, FEELING THE FUTURE: EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FOR THE ANOMOLOUS RETROACTIVE INFLUENCES ON COGNITION AND AFFECT. What was so unusual about this paper was that it indicated evidence for the existence of PSI, a topic which was never considered valid in a mainstream journal before. Why? Because the term PSI is now used to describe that which is paranormal, and to the mainstream, that means irrational, and unbelievable In Dr. Bem’s words, “ PSI denotes anomalous processes of information or energy transfer that are currently unexplained in terms of known physical or biological mechanisms.”

Bem conducted a series of experiments in which he asked students to choose between two curtains presented on a computer screen. Behind one, was a picture, behind the other, a blank wall. They were asked which one they thought hid the picture. Findings were that the students were able to pick the one with the photo behind it with a frequency statistically greater than chance. And, that frequency increased if the picture was pornographic!

Next, he had students look at some words, and then asked them to write down any they remembered. After that, he had them more deliberately study half the words. His findings indicated that the students better “remembered” the words they had studied after the test. That’s right---not a misprint!!! They remembered the words better that they had studied AFTER the test! And this was also statistically significant.

The overall reaction to these findings was one of disbelief, and created a global debate on how these “impossible” results" could have occurred. In fact, the criticisms and scrutinizing began even before the article was actually published. When the results of Bem’s studies first leaked out in 2010, the internet began buzzing with discussions and hypotheses of what he “must’” have done wrong.

The world could hardly attack Dr. Bem himself. His reputation as a researcher was lengthy, stellar, and impeccable. So, they began to find fault with his methods, his statistical analyses, and anything else they could think of. Several replications were begun. Different statistical methods were applied. There seemed to be a frantic rush to somehow demonstrate that this couldn’t be so.
The media picked up on all of this, which resulted in magazine and newspaper articles being written, including one in the New York Times, and prompted interviews with Dr. Bem on television and radio, including his much discussed appearance on the Colbert Report.
As Dr. Larry Dossey expressed in his journal article by the same name, WHY ARE SCIENTISTS AFRAID OF DARYL BEM? Why are these findings creating such a fuss? Unfortunately, it seems PSI has no credibility in the world of science. IF it did, many of the underlying assumptions by which we live, and which scientists hold to be immutable truths, would have to be modified. (And, of course, some great egos would have to admit that they were wrong!!)
This is not the first time in history that someone has had the audacity to question the supposed truths of a scientific community. Remember, it was once accepted that the earth was the center of the universe! Enter Galileo-----and that poor man ended up accused of heresy, and under lifetime arrest, for daring to propose the ludicrous and “impossible to believe” idea that the earth revolved around the sun. Alas, it was later determined that he was right, and the concept was incorporated into a new world view.
On Friday, July 7th, the person behind all this present controversy, Daryl Bem, was our guest at the Rhine. (I had seen him only the night before on the Science Network in a prerecorded episode of Through the Wormhole). He gave a private presentation to our research team, and then later, gave a public presentation at the Steadman Auditorium.
Daryl Bem is a down to earth, unassuming, extremely likable individual. He is obviously brilliant, and communicates what he knows with ease. After listening to him, one is amazed by the amount of knowledge he has imparted in such a short amount of time. He intersperses his dialogue with humorous comments, personal quips, and interesting tidbits of related information.
We at the Rhine Center have no problem accepting the credibility of Bem’s findings. We deal with issues that are considered by many as “unbelievable” and “impossible” every day. For us, his research is just a natural extension of the work begun by J.B. Rhine in the Duke Parapsychology Lab so many years ago. We applaud him for having the courage to pursue this line of inquiry. We hope his work will become the first crack in the rigid tenets of modern science, and may even lead to a serious fracture!!!
Of course, we don’t expect this to happen overnight, and the debate will rage on. The implications of all of this are as yet unclear, but it’s a start. So, we don’t suggest that college students now begin studying for their exams after they’ve taken them!!! We do however suggest that orthodox scientists begin studying findings such as these, and re-evaluating their concept of what is indisputably not possible. In the end, they might just find that embracing the idea of “believing in impossible things” is the ultimate triumph after all!
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Daryl Bem is a social psychologist and Professor Emeritus at Cornell University.

Whatever your prior view of the debate over psi, this book is an absolute requirement if you wish to be kept updated. The current status of differing views on scientific arguments for and against the existence of psychic phenomena is debated in this volume. The only risk is that it is easy to choose whom to believe and thereby find your own personal biases confirmed. On the other hand, should you be open-minded and hoping for a resolution, you may at first be disappointed with the stagnation. Nevertheless, I am convinced that the seeds for synthesis are actually there, although hard to find. Debates are actually not the best way of encouraging progress in a controversial subject. Inevitably, even without our biases, it is the most persuasive and eloquent debaters who are deemed the winners, whereas in this case the only winner should be science. It becomes then this reviewer’s difficult task to try to bring fairness back to the forefront, but ultimately in a case like this impartiality is an ambitious goal. Even so, I prefer to think that I share the attitude of most serious researchers in this area: If I am being fooled, I want the critic to tell me how.

The book contains chapters written by some of the most vocal experts in this field. Dean Radin and Chris Carter are the proponents presenting the case for psi having now been established, while the critics Ray Hyman, Jim Alcock, and Christopher French take the opposing view. I am going to allow my own bias to immediately discount the chapter by Michael Shermer, the editor of The Skeptic, on the grounds that it is not science; rather, it is based mainly on his personal experiences with tarot readings, accompanied by tales provided to him by the maverick English journalist Jon Ronsson (producer of the film The Men Who Stare at Goats). The chapter does fulfill a function—as a shop-window example of what the proponents in the book complain about: arrogance, in this case assuming psychical researchers know nothing about cold reading.

I shall not attempt a summary and evaluation of each chapter, because this is more than adequately provided by the editors in the form of their own introduction. Instead, I will look at the main issues per se. Harvard psychiatrist Ruth Richards provides a fair-minded introduction to the topic, after which the major contributors present their cases. The contributors then all come back for round two, rebuttals in which they evaluate their opponents’ chapters. Finally, epilogues are provided by the critic Richard Wiseman, the proponent Stephan Schwartz, and the editors themselves.

The confrontation gets heated and personal at times. Frustrated at the lack of appreciation for the enormous effort they expend to fulfill the critic’s demands with the limited support available, the proponents begin to see the critics as outmoded die-hard believers in materialism. They are seen as being left behind by recent developments in quantum physics and consciousness studies. Consequently, several of the proponents label the critics now as “psi deniers,” in much the same class as consciousness deniers and climate change deniers. Whatever one thinks about this labeling, it needs to be said that while much has been written on the psychology of belief in the paranormal, very little is known about the opposing polarized disbelief. Even if it causes some offence, it is therefore of value that Carter contributes a section of his chapter under the rubric Psychology of the Dogmatic Critic (p. 96).

And offence it does cause. Hyman claims he has always, in his role as a member of the Committee for Scientific Inquiry and through his papers in the Skeptical Inquirer, made a distinction between his treatment of parapsychology and other paranormal claims, recognizing that the former are based on scientific procedures. He is clearly offended by the allegations of unfair treatment made particularly by Carter and Schwartz. Likewise, Alcock recoils against this treatment as “ad hominem attacks” and “reviling the messenger.”

Saturday, July 9, 2011

“Best-selling author and self-help guru James Ray was convicted last month of negligent homicide in the 2009 deaths of three people at a ceremony he led in an Arizona sweat lodge. His conviction raises enduring questions about how far society should go in monitoring therapeutic spiritual activities, particularly when matters of health and safety are at stake.” – Mitch Horowitz, The Wall Street Journal

Mitch Horowitz, author and friend of the Rhine Research Center, examines the impact of this conviction and the history of the societal attitudes towards spiritual healing. Included is a link to an article published in the Wall Street Journal on Friday, July 8th, 2011.

Monday, June 27, 2011

We are proud to bring you the summer, 2011 edition of the Rhine Research Center’s quarterly newsletter.

In this newsletter, we have a feature article by Lee Pantas, “The Synchronicity of the Two Octopuses,” illuminating the often overlooked connection between art and precognition. Most people understand easily how dreaming and states of reverie are often conducive to precognitive hits; it is therefore no surprise to realize that the right-brained, timeless state one enters during the process of creating art might lead to precognitive productions, often unbeknownst to the artist! See for yourself.

Congratulations to our Senior Research Fellow, Christine Simmonds-Moore, and her husband Steve Moore on the June 7th birth of their son, Leif Athan Rhane Simmonds-Moore!

We also have our regular “Psi Chronicles” column, by executive director Sally Rhine Feather, Ph.D., outlining a case of macro-PK or psychokinesis; we have an article discussing the well-known “decline effect” in science and how parapsychology might shed light on something that mystifies scientists in other fields; and we have reviews of a parapsychology documentary, an iphone app for practicing your psychic ability, and a book by William Bengston, Ph.D., arguably the most innovative and reliable voice in the field of energy healing today.

Additionally, the last page of the newsletter for a summary of the upcoming events at the Rhine. We have so many well-known, interesting speakers coming in the next few months; I would hate for you to miss out!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

by Robert Krulwich
Later today you are going to do something, something you don't know about yet.
Yet somehow, it's already happened. Somehow, it's already affected you.

Huh?

One of the most respected, senior and widely published professors of psychology, Daryl Bem of Cornell, has just published an article that suggests that people — ordinary people — can be altered by experiences they haven't had yet. Time, he suggests, is leaking. The Future has slipped, unannounced, into the Present. And he thinks he can prove it. Read More

Dowsing and Remote Viewing are close cousins, many of the former government RVers are dowsers, too, and many of the techniques and skills used in dowsing can be applied to Remote Viewing. So its natural that the Remote Viewing group decided to look into this dowsing phenomenon to see what we could learn. A couple of the members of the group prepared and presented us all information on the history, skills and application of dowsing at the most recent RV meeting. We just scratched the surface of all that we could learn about this ancient skill, but it was surely enough to whet our appetites to learn more.

Like other practices that are working with intuition and “non-conscious” information, dowsing requires a lot of practice and experience to become a useful tool. We were interested in learning more about dowsing because it is so similar to Remote Viewing, and can be applied to Remote Viewing. Discussing dowsing also was a great stepping off point for lots of valuable discussion within the group on the nuances of working with intuitive information. As usual, it was the shared insight on experiences and practices that made our meeting worthwhile for those of us there. We discussed pendulum dowsing as well as the use of dowsing rods. We were able to practice this skill, and many of the techniques required were presented.

My point here is to encourage you to come join our monthly Remote Viewing group, it’s a place to learn about the how-to and the experiential parts of the practice you just are not going to get off the internet or on your own. Over the years, I learned a ton of information from reading and gleaning what I could off the internet, and I attended lectures and workshops on Remote Viewing. But having a regular get-together with folks you can rely on, who know what you are talking about but also have read and experienced other things that you can learn from, makes a world of difference. I am regularly impressed with new information and ideas that I did not know was out there, and I come away from each meeting better informed, energized to try new things, and with another addition to that growing pile of “must read” books. Most folks in the group come from other interests, and want to learn about Remote Viewing to add another tool to their toolbox. I encourage you to do the same, and we look forward to seeing you at the next meeting on July 20th.
-- Benton Bogle

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Just as things had begun to quiet down at the Rhine, we got a new jolt of energy with the advent of Paul and Charla Devereux. Paul was our featured speaker and presenter on Friday the 20th of May, and Saturday, the 21st of May. He is world renowned for his work in investigating ancient sacred sites, archaeoacoustics, ancient cultures, and altered states of consciousness.

Although he started out in life as a painter with a degree in Fine Art, his interests soon expanded, and he is now the author of innumerable books, as well as journal and magazine articles. He makes presentations around the globe, and speaks on television and radio. His achievements also include being founding co- editor of the Journal, TIME AND MIND, a Senior Research Fellow at the International Consciousness Research Laboratory at Princeton, and a Research Affiliate at the Royal College of Art.

Charla Devereux accompanied her husband on his visit and is accomplished in her own right. She is the Network Manager of the Scientific and Medical Network, as well as having written several books on alternative medicine. She is an authority on Aromatherapy, and was instrumental in having that subject taught as a serious college level course in the United States. Most recently, she and Paul have co-authored a book on Lucid Dreaming.

Over the course of the weekend, Paul took us on an odyssey through time and space. He intrigued us with slides of various geological sites, where magnificent pieces of the earth were restructured or decorated by ancient man. These were deemed as sacred spaces for connecting with the mythic Great Time.

These ancient cultures had a very different vision of the world than that of modern man. They saw the earth as a living system, of which they were a part. They viewed all things as being possessed of a spirit to be honored and respected. Nature was not to be exploited or abused, but used as a gift that could unveil the great mysteries of life.

Also, their concept of consciousness and reality was quite different. Hallucinatory drugs were not taken for hedonistic pleasure or material gain or power, but to obtain a higher state of being. Natural parts of the environment were also fashioned to do this. An example is found at the legendary Circle of Stonehenge where some of the stones were apparently struck repeatedly, to produce a ringing sound (archaeoacoustics!), and facilitate a trance state. (This would finally explain why these stones were moved 20 miles to be put in their present location!)

When in these altered states, what was experienced was considered to be just as real as what occurred in the natural waking state-----only better! There were no physical limitations, and time lost any meaning. The ability to spirit travel gave a more all-encompassing perspective from which to view life, incorporating other planes of existence, and the vast capabilities of consciousness.

As Paul Devereux pointed out, we may have lost something by dismissing these peoples as primitive. Perhaps they knew and understood much more than we do. Our view of ourselves has become very mechanistic. Consciousness has been reduced to the workings of the brain, just a jumble of electrical impulses producing actions. The soul or spirit has been dismissed as superstition. Any experience that falls out of the realm of consensus reality is considered to be the manifestation of mental illness. Hallucinatory drugs are illegal, and the experiences related to them are again diminished to be aberrant brain activity.

How sad that in today’s environment of advanced technology, one area that is vastly ignored is that of consciousness. Why is it that we are not even allowed to question whether there might be more? Why not at least try to find out? It is known that we only perceive a small portion of what is “out there”. Even then, for consensus, we “fill in the blanks” to make everything conform.

The goal of both Paul Devereux and the Rhine Center is to explore these other possible realms. We investigate in scientific ways, with the same scientific methods that are used universally. Still, our motives and credibility are often questioned. What might others be so afraid of? Are we possibly missing the opportunity to advance ourselves and improve our world? If we keep going the way we are, we are clearly headed for extinction. There are so many questions left to be answered.

Paul and Charla Devereux left us with a renewed sense of wonder about what we might be capable of doing or knowing, and asking ourselves questions about the very fabric of our lives. They are truly charming people, in every sense of the word. They are impressive, not only in their knowledge, but also in their integrity, and the reverence with which they treat their subject matter. We certainly look forward to having them visit again soon!!
-- Cindy Nigro

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Dreams are something we all can relate to, they are a part of all our lives. Jerry Lazarus came to the Stedman Center on Friday night and gave a fascinating and enjoyable talk about dreaming.

Drawing from his own decades of experience studying and working with dreams, and providing many examples from his recently published book "Dreams: Listening to the Voice of God", he gave all the folks there at his talk many valuable ways to work with their own dreams.

Jerry enthusiastically shared with us insights, anecdotes and practical suggestions based on his work with Edgar Cayce's trove of dreamwork, and from the great dream interpreters of the Bible's old testament. I have been fortunate to work more with my own dreams recently, and have set about to learn all I could about the topic, so I was excited to go hear Mr. Lazarus speak, and eager to hear new information on dreamwork.

Jerry had some new insights for me, that's for sure, but his emphasis on some simple things to do regarding our dreams, and his love for this topic were the real stars of his presentation. Of course he covers this most thoroughly in his book, but he wanted us to know that dreaming is about communicating, about learning and working with the central voice always available to us. If you were there at his talk, you had to be impressed by his joy for the subject, and you learned a lot. He sent us home with much to work with and an enthusiasm for new gifts our dreams may provide us.
---Benton Bogle

Monday, May 9, 2011

David Eagleman, an Assistant Professor of neuroscience and psychology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas recently reported on experiments of his team that showed that despite what folks commonly experience, time does not slow down during a crisis. Nor does brain processing speed up, so that time seems to slow down. What their research shows is that during a crisis, such as a NDE, often "the part of the brain called the amygdale becomes more active, and lays down extra sets of memories that go along with the actual events." So when you play the event back in your memory, you recall time slowing down, though that is not what happened.

Let’s consider another common part of a Near Death Experience, the life review. People having a NDE often report a replaying of their whole life as part of the experience. I do not want to take away from the spiritual aspect of the NDE, that is an essential part of my life. But I think a life review would be explained as a logical part of how consciousness works during a life threatening crisis, especially if we view consciousness as part of the DNA's adaptability. In an earlier blog I discussed how natural selection would need to limit PSI ability. The link is here http://rhineonline.blogspot.com/search/label/Evolutionary%20advantage.

My experiences and study of Remote Viewing, and other PSI events, has led me to believe that PSI is part of the normal processing of information that constitutes consciousness. Dr. Jim Carpenter's "First Sight" model of PSI, and Dr. Christine Hardy's exploration of Semantic Constellations both describe " pre-experiential mental processes by which the mind structures all its experiences and commences all its actions", as Dr. Carpenter notes. I noticed, as I look at the mind as an evolved tool of genes, shaped by and tailored for the process of natural selection, that we can see the process of consciousness conforming also to the process of natural selection. This process requires three things, genetic variation, inheritance, and differential fitness. Consciousness provides these three things. Your thoughts, beliefs, ideas and knowledge vary and change over time, the raw materials in your brain progress and grow. Likewise, these things remain inheritable from situation to situation you find yourself in over time, that is what memory is. But it is existence of differential fitness in mental process that shows just how great thinking is as a tool evolved over time. With mental processes, the range of adaptability is vastly increased in the individual. Also, the range of solutions to problems is beyond just conscious problem solving. Research shows that subliminally, the brain is gathering and processing information, and solutions to problems can spontaneously pop into your consciousness without conscious effort. As you experience, the vast majority of what you do is initiated and carried out without your considered effort, because your mind is processing multiple systems of information constantly, subconsciously.

But when you encounter a new situation, the brain scrambles to adapt to the novel environmental factor it needs to deal with. It does this by trying known solutions to similar events, and if that does not work, it goes into automatic, instinctual and "dis-associated" mode as it rapidly tries to find a way to process the new information. Getting back to NDEs, people who have had them commonly report they recall their minds experiencing multiple thought lines at once, like those reported by Albert Heim who recounted his own brush with death during a fall. It is also in these crisis moments that PSI events occur, as all available data from the mind is accessed to adapt to the potentially life ending event. If the material for thought and consciousness is being processed to insure survival, then could the "life review" be a memory data dump, a last chance attempt to access all the stored experiences of the individual, making it available for the conscious and especially the subconscious to use to come up with a last second save? Could the sense of "linear time" of the life review be, like the recalled experience of time slowing down during crisis, simply be the memory's way of organizing the entire life data file when it’s recalled later? Can you recall your life any other way?

Again, I am not saying that all of an NDE is just biological processes. But the life review fits right in with an understanding of how consciousness works. It is that same understanding of the mind processes that help explain where PSI fits in, and helps me understand the dynamics involved in Remote Viewing.
-- Benton Bogle

Friday, April 15, 2011

On Friday, April 8th, the Rhine Research Center was honored to host a presentation by renowned author, publisher, and speaker, Mitch Hororitz.

Mitch’s recent book, Occult America , is highly acclaimed and received the 2010 PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Award for literary excellence. Mitch is editor-in-chief at Tarcher/Penguin in New york, His credits include innumerable speaking engagements and interviews on such programs as CBS Sunday Morning and Dateline NBC. He has written articles in several well respected newspapers and magazines including the Washington Post and U.S. News and World Report.

Earlier in the day on Friday, Mitch was interviewed by Frank Stasio on NPR in Chapel Hill. During this time, several of us at the Rhine gathered at a local restaurant where we were to meet him for lunch after he finished..

Having never seen a picture of him, I expected an austere older man, who would be rather stuffy and standoffish. So you can imagine my surprise when Mitch arrived with a bounce in his step and a boyish smile on his face. He introduced himself to all of us in an engaging and particularly unassuming manner which immediately made us all feel comfortable.

This is not to say that he is not a serious or scholarly person, but he presents his ideas in such a way that they are not only understandable but fascinating. He briefly described some of the topics that he would be covering later that evening , everything from Ouija Boards and seances, to Abraham Lincoln, the Freemason Society, and recent Supreme Court decisions to uphold various religious practices.

The lunch hour went by quickly, and I was now really looking forward to the evening program. And Mitch did not disappoint. To a large group of people, he spoke for 90 minutes, nonstop, while the crowd sat mesmerized (pun intended) by his well-researched chronicle of how occult practices sprung up in America, and had an impact not only on religion and spirituality, but also on the social conscience and political movements of the times, right up to the present.

Mitch explained that the term “occult” often has negative connotations and is assumed to be associated either with some form of devil worship or else with ridiculous superstition. His definition, however, is more specifically used to describe the many religious and spiritual groups that came about during the Renaissance and had their roots in the ancient mysteries of Greece, Rome, and Egypt.

On the lighter side, he described how his interest in the occult was first sparked when he was a young child. While at a diner with his “grown-up” family members, he said he became bored., and wandered to the front of the restaurant where there was a variety of novelty and gum machines. One of them, dispensed horoscopes in small plastic tubes which fascinated him,. In purchasing one, he discovered that his horoscope said that he would receive a letter!

Now being only nine years old, and never receiving any mail whatsoever., he was intrigued. And the next day, he did get a letter! ----- No matter that it was only from the local library telling him he had an overdue book! And so began a lifelong passion.

Occult America is a fascinating read and is so detailed that it would be impossible to outline it in these few short paragraphs, but it tells of the way these various spiritual religions sprang up and were allowed to flourish in America as they would be no where else. It describes how they wound their way into our society and had vast influence on our culture and history;. It seems that people from time immemorial have searched for meaning in their lives, and wondered if there was not something greater than themselves that they personally could connect with.

Now, as I read this book , I recognize that these colonies of people were actually the forefathers of what we are doing today at the Rhine. Of course the Rhine is in no way a religious organization, but a rigorous scientific organization. Still, we too are working to discover if there is something bigger than ourselves, be it God, some energy field, or a collective unconscious, that we can access. We work on the premise that the mind is capable of far more than was originally believed, that mind over matter is a possibility. While we now have the advantage of science and technology that those before us did not, our goal is the same, to give to all men (and women!) the ability to have a greater understanding of their capabilities, and to demystify the unknown.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Paul Smith is a Remote Viewing trainer, wrote the Military's RV manual, and was a central member of the Government's Remote Viewing program during its heyday.

Mr. Smith paid the Rhine Center a visit last Friday and Saturday, and if you had a chance to come hear him talk, you know he had a lot of fascinating things to say. He was a very engaging speaker, and on Friday night he talked about Remote Viewing in general and some of his adventures in the now declassified Stargate program.

On Saturday he went into detail on the theories and mechanics of Remote Viewing, and the group who attended got to practice RV with Mr. Smith as their instructor. It was fascinating and fun, and even though I haved learned a lot about remote viewing over the years, he still had some new insights to share. He really delved into the big questions remote viewing presents us with, and we had a great time discussing the hows and whys of the experience. Everyone there seemed to get a lot out of it, and we are looking forward to having him back. Do yourself a favor and check out his website http://www.rviewer.com/.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

On Thursday, January 27, 2011, the well-respected psychologist Daryl Bem, PhD appeared on the Comedy Central program the Colbert Report to discuss a topic that has set the media ablaze and has given the world of psychology a new perspective on how to test theories that have been the subject of parapsychology for over a century. Retroactive habituation, or time travelling porn (as Stephen Colbert called it), is an example of precognition (receiving information about future events) which can be demonstrated under laboratory conditions using traditional psychological testing methods. This top notch research has been recognized by the New York Times, New Scientist, Psychology Today and ABC News, and it has been published by the respected peer-reviewed scientific Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

In a typical example of Dr. Bem’s (2010) experiment, 100 participants were placed in front of a computer screen where they were shown two curtains. They were told that an image would appear behind one of the curtains and asked to guess which curtain would reveal the image. When the images that were displayed were designed to evoke a significant emotional reaction from the participants (e.g. fear, disgust, joy, or eroticism) the participants showed a 53% chance of selecting the correct curtain when a positive image was shown or of avoiding the image when a negative image was shown. Though this may sound like a small variance from chance (50%), Dr. Bem notes that 53% is the same advantage that casinos have on a roulette wheel and was the same percentage of votes received by Barrack Obama in the 2008 presidential elections. His results built upon prior research that indicated that people react to significant emotional events between 2 and 10 seconds before they happen. It seems logical that even a brief precognitive knowledge of a frightening image (like that of a tiger ready to pounce) would help a human to avoid danger and would provide a significant evolutionary advantage.

Although 60% of the public believe in ESP, psychologists are typically some of the most skeptical of all scientists when it comes to parapsychology. Because of Dr. Bem’s significant contributions to social psychology, his position at Cornel University, and his use of standard psychological testing methods, many scientists are now trying to determine how to integrate this new knowledge with existing theories.

Daryl Bem is a scientist with impeccable credentials who is highly respected for his work in psychology. He was once a skeptic of psi research, and since he has skills as an illusionist, he was recruited as a skeptical consultant on ESP experiments by leading parapsychologists like Charles Honorton. Once he became familiar with the work that was being done in parapsychology and after he critically examined the research, Dr. Bem realized that there were convincing effects being produced that called for further experimentation. In other words, rather than sticking to his deep seated beliefs and rationalizing his objections, Bem followed the evidence. By upholding the most important and honorable principles of science, Bem created experiments to help expand the reach of laboratory research that has been done for over 100 years in laboratories all over the world.

The Rhine Research Center is proud to have Daryl Bem as a member of their advisory board, and has been privileged to have him speak at the center. Keep an eye out for future experiments at the RRC related to this research, and you may have the opportunity to be part of other historic discoveries in the field of parapsychology.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Do spirits exist, and if so, can they play a useful if not essential role in our individual and collective lives? Are there sources of invisible information and guidance waiting to be tapped and harnessed if we are just willing to listen?
If we, in our essence, are spirits too, can we come to see this possibility when we look at ourselves in the mirror? And can we draw on this great inner potential and power with wisdom and love to change our ways accordingly, before it is too late for humankind?

I believe that science not only can address such questions, but in the process can potentially help increase our ability to receive spiritual information accurately, and we can then act upon it safely and wisely.

Praise for the work

"Gary Schwartz has been on a remarkable journey throughout his lifetime. His body of work is inspirational to me because his passion to bring science and spirit together is dominated by an empirical doctrine that is unimpeachable. His latest research as recounted in The SacredPromise is likely to impress even the most diehard skeptic. I am proud to recommend this book and to heap as much praise as possible upon my friend, Gary Schwartz.” —Kelsey Grammer

“Sacred Promise is elegant, rigorous, and groundbreaking—research science at its most innovative. Gary Schwartz’s exposition of ideas interfacing theory, paradigm, method, and anecdotes shows academia at its best.” —Dr. Lisa Miller, associate professor of psychology at Columbia University, editor of the Oxford University Press Handbook of Psychology and Spirituality, and cohost of the TV show Psychic Kids

“Gary Schwartz applies procedures of experimentation that no honest skeptic could argue with.” —Deepak Chopra, author of The Third Jesus and Life After Death

"Postmortem survival has long been a taboo topic in scientific circles. Gary Schwartz had ingenuity and a pioneering spirit to go deeply into this area and not be afraid of what he found. You’ll be fascinated by this book!” —Charles T. Tart, PhD, author of Altered States of Consciousness and The End of Materialism
“For more than two decades I have had the privilege of working with Gary Schwartz. He has amazed me not only with his insights and hard scientific approach, but also his willingness to explore and then share his findings on very controversial topics. Even if you do not believe in the premises of The Scared Promise, your intellect and heart will be teased enough so that you just might open your mind and start to believe that all this, and more, is possible.” --Jerry Cohen, CEO, Canyon Ranch

“This book is an absolute must-read for anyone who struggles with faith, love, death, and aspects of divinity.”—John Edward, author of Crossing Over and The Infinite Quest

Dr. Rhine Feather will discuss her life-long research into the paranormal and her involvement in the Rhine Center founded by her parents Joseph and Louisa Rhine in 1927 to pioneer the study of parapsychology. She co-authored The Gift: The Extraordinary Experiences of Ordinary People with Michael Schmicker in 2005 based upon research at the Rhine Center.

Joseph Rhine initially investigated the mind’s ability to gain psychic information by other than sensory means, known as extrasensory perception (ESP), and to perform psychokinesis (PK), the movement of objects by mental intention in cooperation with Duke University. The Journal of Parapsychology was founded in 1937 as an independent peer-reviewed professional journal to provide an outlet for reporting the findings from Duke and other laboratories at home and abroad. Now in the 21st century, the Rhine Center continues the mission and work of its founder J.B. Rhine with a broadened scope directed deeper into the Study of Consciousness.

Sally will discuss the history of the Rhine Center, research findings over 70 years, and the importance of twins in paranormal studies.

Twin Talk airs live on Fridays at 8 AM Pacific / 10 AM Central / 11 AM Eastern on the World Talk Radio Variety Channel. To access the show, log on at www.worldtalkradio.com. All shows will be available in Dr. Mercy's Content Library on the World Talk Radio Variety Channel for on-demand and podcast download.